1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a decorative article, to a decorative article, and to a timepiece.
2. Related Art
An excellent appearance is essential to decorative articles such as the external parts of a timepiece. Metals such as Au, Pt, and Ag are commonly used to make such parts in order to achieve such an attractive appearance. Alloys such as pink gold, which provides a pink color with the luster of gold, are commonly used to produce decorative articles with a color and appearance that cannot be achieved by a pure metal. Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-S64-62478 teaches a decorative article that has a plated Au alloy coating with a pink color.
However, color variations occur easily with decorative articles that have such a plated pink Au alloy coating, and achieving a stable appearance is difficult. Furthermore, because the hardness of this alloy is low, the surface of decorative articles (such as external members of a timepiece and personal accessories) made from this alloy is easily scratched, and the appearance can therefore drop drastically with extended use.